Preparing 2

I write this in the lovely surroundings of the Crieff Hydro. Neil is at work today down in Leven and I have a day to myself. So far I have had a long lie, watched JK, been on FB, written part of my address for the Rotary Christmas Party tomorrow night, been to the Spa and am currently sitting with my trusty netbook having a naughty glass of wine looking out of the Winter Garden conservatory of the Hotel. Nice except I am bored of my own company lol.

Neil & I take off for a couple of days each December - normally to do some Christmas shopping but more importantly to spend just a couple of days just the two of us. This year it has been especially important because the next month will see huge changes for us, as we prepare for the move to the Manse. We are both looking forward to the move and to settling in a new community not too far from home. We still have lots of decisions to make - primarily what to do with our own house. It's been our home for 15 years and we built it - so a lot of love and sweat has been invested in it. We are not sure what is best - rent it out? Sell it and buy something else as a wee bolt hole? Keep it as our bolt hole? I am sure things will become much clearer.

Then there are the decisions we are having to make on the Manse - colours, carpets, curtains, furniture, where to put all our stuff!! We started off 21 years ago in a wee 2 bedroomed house in Carluke and now have a big house FULL to bursting with stuff!! I think the local charity shops may see a lot of it - but what to keep? What to ditch?

Advent is a time of preparation - as we look forward to Jesus' arrival as a tiny baby. For us it is also a time of preparation as a family as we prepare to move and settle in a new home. Both come with many expectations. I just have to trust in the Lord that all will be well.

Gone and done it now....

I have just got back from a few days away - a much needed break away from the stress and fuss of the last few weeks.
It also gave me a chance to 'celebrate' the outcome of the last couple of months' snooping/discerning/praying/discussing/applying/meeting people etc

The lovely people of what will hitherto be known as "The Parish by the River" have asked me to preach as 'sole nominee.' This means that on the 22nd of November I lead a service and at the end of it the members of the congregation vote as whether or not call me as their minister.

It was a great moment accepting the invitation but I also had to let other people know I would not be following up on my application or tentative interest. That wasn't so easy.

Anyway there is now lots of planning to be done - most of it based on the assumption that all will go well on the 22nd of Nov. The main reason being that there is a huge amount of work being done to get the manse habitable. I had to make my first decision less than 24 hrs after accepting the invitation to be sole nominee - I had to choose a kitchen! Tomorrow it is bathroom fittings. I am very lucky to be getting so much say - but when I tell you the manse has no interior walls or you will understand why it makes sense. Essentially we will, all being well (successfully preaching etc), be moving into a 'new' manse - everything will be brand new. They have even promised the minister's cat will have a cat flap!

It is quite a thought to plan moving from our current home into a manse and settling there. We have a whole lot of stuff to sort through, decisions to make, arrangements to make. But there is also the emotional turmoil for everyone to deal with. Granted we are only potentially moving about 12 miles but that still comes with it's own issues - especially for the teenagers of the house. We just need to keep the lines of communication open and keep talking....